IT has been confirmed that the red card shown to Monaghan’s Darren Hughes late in the All-Ireland quarter-final was for “striking with the hand”.
The Scotstown midfielder was sent off by referee Marty Duffy after he put his hand on Tyrone player Tiarnan McCann’s head and the Monaghan County Board has confirmed that an appeal to have the red card rescinded has been submitted to the GAA.
No date for the hearing has been issued and, while Monaghan have no more fixtures this year, Hughes would be suspended for the first National Football League game of next season in the unlikely event that the appeal fails.
Meanwhile, the situation with McCann is much more time-sensitive. The Killyclogher clubman was criticised for simulating injury in the encounter with Hughes and was then slapped with an eight-week ban by the GAA under a rule concerning ‘misconduct discrediting the Association’.
That would rule him out of Sunday’s All-Ireland semi-final against Kerry – and the final should the Red Hands win. It is understood that the Tyrone County Board have lodged an appeal against McCann’s ban but were unavailable for comment yesterday.
